Both use flagship processors, but how much stronger is the performance of a gaming phone compared to a performance flagship? And how much better is the gaming experience? I think many friends considering buying a gaming phone have had similar questions.

On the previous generation flagship, the Red Magic 10s Pro+, we measured a maximum whole-machine power consumption of 18 watts. What does this mean? A normal office laptop consumes only 30-40 watts. Regular smartphones, limited by their thermal dissipation capabilities, generally operate within 10 watts, with peaks not exceeding 12 watts. Yet, Red Magic, relying on its consistent air-cooling, can push performance release to more extreme levels.

And now, Red Magic is no longer satisfied with air cooling; it has even set its sights on water cooling, on server-grade fluorinated cooling liquid. The Red Magic 11 Pro+ in our hands is the world's first water-cooled phone equipped with this technology.

For several generations, Red Magic has called its design "Ultra-Futurism," but now I feel the future has arrived, because no phone interprets the future better than the Red Magic 11 Pro+.

The most striking external feature of the Red Magic 11 Pro+ is the circular liquid-cooling device on the back cover. The two most sci-fi colors, silver and blue, create a spaceship-like aesthetic on the back. Upon closer inspection, you can see bubbles actually flowing within the blue tubes. This isn't just decoration; it's genuine liquid cooling.

Another interesting point is that the Red Magic 11 Pro+ has a metal-colored panel designed in the center of the circular liquid-cooling tubes on the back, which functions for wireless charging. However, color difference and texture give it a visual appearance of being layered on top of the back cover, but in reality, like the liquid cooling and camera module, it sits beneath the glass back cover.

Red Magic calls this new cooling system the "Pulsating Water Cooling Engine." We won't spend too much time boasting; you just need to know that the liquid in this water-cooling apparatus is a fluorinated fluid with an operating temperature range of -60°C to 108°C, has drop resistance and leak prevention measures, and is driven by a miniature ceramic pump.

Working in tandem with this is Red Magic's active cooling fan, "Windrider 4.0," whose maximum speed has been increased to 24,000 rpm and supports IPX8 water resistance. When this new fan operates at full speed during gaming, you can even hear a very distinct whirring sound, which, combined with the Red Magic 11 Pro+'s appearance, resembles the roar of a sci-fi behemoth.

Above the fan is the Red Magic 11 Pro+'s camera module, consisting of a 50MP main camera, a 50MP ultra-wide-angle camera, a 2MP macro camera, and a circular flash.

Starting from the Red Magic 9 Pro series, Red Magic has been crafting a completely flat back cover. However, the flash was always slightly raised above the backplate, which was a bit regrettable. But this time, Red Magic has truly recessed the flash into the backplate as well. The entire back cover is a single piece of complete glass, flawless and perfect.

To the right of the camera module and fan are the Red Magic logo and the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 Supreme Edition logo, respectively. The Red Magic logo conceals an RGB light beneath it.

The overall body design of the Red Magic 11 Pro+ continues from the previous generation, but there's an interesting detailed adjustment: the Red Magic 11 Pro+ extensively uses rectangles to replace circles, including but not limited to the shoulder triggers, the iconic circular power button, volume buttons, and SIM card slot, providing strong recognition.

The body retains the 3.5mm headphone jack. Being able to use wired headphones is actually a very important feature for a gaming phone, as even the most expensive Bluetooth headphones have latency.

Furthermore, compared to the previous generation, the top of the Red Magic 11 Pro+'s body lacks the IR blaster and speaker grille cutouts. This doesn't mean Red Magic has removed these features; the Red Magic 11 Pro+ still supports IR and retains the 1015+1115E dual speaker configuration.

On the front, the Red Magic 11 Pro+ continues the all-screen design, debuting BOE's X10 light-emitting material. It's a 6.85-inch display with 2688x1216 resolution, up to 144Hz refresh rate, and supports 2592Hz PWM dimming + Class DC dimming. The under-display camera area is almost invisible even under strong light, showing significant improvement compared to previous generations' all-screen designs. The 1.25mm narrow bezels with no notch or punch-hole offer an excellent viewing experience, and this generation also features an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor.

The Red Magic 11 Pro+ is equipped with the currently highest-frequency mobile SoC globally - the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 Supreme Edition, built on TSMC's 3rd generation 3nm N3P node. For the CPU, it uses the latest Oryon architecture with a 2+6 octa-core design: two Prime cores can reach up to 4.6 GHz, and six performance cores up to 3.62 GHz. All cores are divided into two groups sharing cache: the Prime cores share 12 MB of cache, and the performance cores share another 12 MB pool. For the GPU, the new Adreno GPU has a maximum frequency of 1.2 GHz and introduces the Adreno High-Performance Memory architecture for the first time, equipped with 18 MB of independent high-speed video memory.

In terms of theoretical performance, the Red Magic 11 Pro+ scored 4,239,651 points in the AnTuTu V11 benchmark under normal temperature conditions, with CPU at 1,287,167 points, GPU at 1,407,325 points, MEM at 606,009 points, and UX at 939,150 points.

Furthermore, to test the performance stability of the Red Magic 11 Pro+ under high load, we conducted three additional consecutive AnTuTu V11 runs, scoring 4,208,874 points, 4,170,207 points, and 4,122,799 points respectively. The temperature curve during these runs shows they were consecutive tests without any cooling assistance. Even under these conditions, the Red Magic 11 Pro+ managed an average score of approximately 4,167,293 points, indicating very strong performance stability.

The Red Magic 11 Pro+ uses LPDDR5T and UFS 4.1 Pro to complement the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 Supreme Edition. Its storage test score is 2,157,386 points, one of the highest current scores. Sequential read speed is 4143.3 MB/s, sequential write speed is 4098.5 MB/s, random read/write speeds are 2592.1 MB/s and 1149.2 MB/s respectively, multithreaded mixed random read/write is 1826.6 MB/s, mixed random read/write is 148.9 MB/s, AI read is 645.9 MB/s, and multithreaded AI read is 377.5 MB/s.

Before starting the game tests, let's discuss other improvements Red Magic has made in the system and peripheral configuration. First is the most crucial aspect: touch. The Red Magic 11 Pro+ features a Synaptics touch chip with an instantaneous touch sampling rate of 3000Hz.

Secondly, Red Magic's self-developed gaming chip, the Red Core R4, working with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 Supreme Edition, supports multiple popular games achieving 2K resolution + 144Hz super resolution and frame rate concurrency, and also supports features like 90Hz full-map ray tracing in "Dark Zone".

Now, let's move on to the gaming test section for the Red Magic 11 Pro+. We selected five popular games: Honor of Kings, Genshin Impact, Honkai: Star Rail, Naraka: Bladepoint Mobile, and Delta Action. The test environment was room temperature 20°C, WiFi connection, 300 nits brightness, and Awakening mode.

According to in-game screenshots, the rendering resolution of the Red Magic 11 Pro+ under these settings is 2160x977, making it one of the phones with the highest rendering resolution for Honkai: Star Rail currently.

During a 30-minute run in the 'Golden Moment' map, the frame rate curve of the Red Magic 11 Pro+ was basically a straight line with very little fluctuation. The final average frame rate was 61 fps, with 1% Low FPS at 55.9 fps, a top-tier result.

But what's truly surprising about the Red Magic 11 Pro+ isn't just the high average frame rate; for example, the 1% Low FPS value is also very high, very close to the average frame rate.

Additionally, below the frame rate curve, you can see some blue markers. These represent instances of "stutter / frame drop / unsmooth" UI frame rendering. In the performance monitoring software PerfDog, this means the rendering time for one frame exceeded twice the average rendering time of the previous three frames, causing that frame to not be presented at the expected time. Even if the average frame rate seems normal, this can lead to perceptible stuttering.

Based on this definition, frames taking longer than 125 ms are classified as BigJank (severe stutter), those not exceeding 83.33 ms are SmallJank (potential stutter), and those between 83.33 ms and 125 ms are Jank (stutter). These three are represented by red, blue, and orange colors respectively.

So it's not just about high average frame rate and stable frame rate. Analyzing from multiple angles and metrics, from 1% Low FPS to frame generation times, the Red Magic 11 Pro+ delivers all-around silky smoothness.

Furthermore, the whole-machine power consumption of the Red Magic 11 Pro+ during Honkai: Star Rail gameplay was 7.6 watts. Currently, new flagships running the 'Golden Moment' in Honkai: Star Rail at Very High + 60 fps settings generally have power consumption around 7-8 watts.

This means the top-tier visual performance of the Red Magic 11 Pro+ isn't achieved by brute force – simply cranking up frequency for frame rate – but rather through deep optimization in cooperation with the Red Core R4.

Regarding temperature, the maximum temperature on the front of the Red Magic 11 Pro+ was 45.3°C, and on the back was 39.8°C, a difference of nearly 5°C between the two sides. The thermal image also clearly shows the circular path of the liquid cooling tubes and the airflow from the fan, demonstrating that the "Pulsating Water Cooling Engine" is not a gimmick but a very明显 and effective cooling method.

Just in terms of gaming performance, the Red Magic 11 Pro+ truly shattered the author's stereotype. The author previously always thought Red Magic relied on brute force, with higher SoC frequency and power consumption compared to other smartphones. But the Red Magic 11 Pro+ speaks with facts, proving Red Magic's capability in game tuning. It achieves top-tier frame rates while also having top-tier power efficiency, and coupled with its powerful cooling capability, its gaming temperature control also becomes top-tier.

Of course, the temperature control exhibited by the Red Magic 11 Pro+ certainly had some assistance from the cool northern autumn weather. However, under high load, the temperature difference of up to 5°C between the front and back of the body is sufficient to demonstrate the effectiveness of this air-cooling + water-cooling thermal configuration.

Moreover, whether the 'Destroyer' mode is enabled or not, Red Magic currently handles mainstream games with ease. This also makes us believe that even if larger, more demanding games emerge in the future, Red Magic will have better performance compared to contemporary models.

As mentioned at the beginning, on the previous generation Red Magic 10s Pro+, we measured a maximum whole-machine power consumption of 18 watts using a cooling accessory, representing its performance ceiling. On the Red Magic 11 Pro+, the author briefly replicated this scenario.

First, the basis of this challenge is Red Magic's 'Destroyer' mode, which can forcibly max out the CPU and GPU frequencies to achieve maximum performance output.

First, we tried without a cooling accessory. The frame rate was completely maxed out, with an average frame rate of 61 fps and 1% Low FPS also at 61 fps.

Secondly, regarding frequency, both CPU clusters of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 Supreme Edition were nearly maxed out: the two Prime cores averaged 4318 MHz, and the six performance cores averaged 3616 MHz.

In terms of power consumption, the whole-machine power consumption of the Red Magic 11 Pro+ reached 16 watts. Without using a cooling accessory, its performance release approached that of the previous generation with a cooling accessory.

Finally, the temperature. Although the Red Magic 11 Pro+ is equipped with a water-cooling system, the intensity of the Destroyer mode clearly exceeded its heat dissipation capacity. The maximum temperature on the front reached 53.4°C, and on the back reached 48.5°C, with the same 5°C difference between front and back. The cooling system of the Red Magic 11 Pro+ is remarkably effective, as the thermal image still clearly shows the hot air being expelled by the fan.

The rear camera module of the Red Magic 11 Pro+ is completely hidden under the glass back cover. While being perfectly flat, it also features a triple camera setup of 50MP + 50MP + 2MP.

Specifically, the main camera is an OmniVision OV50E 50MP 1/1.55" sensor with F1.88 aperture, and the ultra-wide-angle is an OmniVision OV50D 50MP 1/2.88" sensor with F2.2 aperture. While it can't match imaging flagships and lacks a telephoto lens, it poses no issues for general use.

In ample sunlight, the Red Magic 11 Pro+ can also demonstrate very good imaging quality, especially for street photography style. This shows Red Magic has solid foundations in certain imaging algorithm areas, particularly for scenes with a slightly humanistic or storytelling feel.

The fundamental imaging skills of the Red Magic 11 Pro+ are also solid. Color reproduction indoors is accurate, not pursuing high saturation or sharpening, but rather faithfully restoring the colors and scenes seen by the naked eye. The imaging style also has a unique flavor. However, ultimately, to achieve the flat backplate, sacrifices had to be made in terms of image sensor size. After all, you can't have your cake and eat it too.

For the battery life and charging section of the Red Magic 11 Pro+, our test environment remained consistent with the gaming tests: room temperature 20°C, WiFi connection, 300 nits brightness, and features like extreme fast charging enabled.

The Red Magic 11 Pro+ is equipped with a 7500mAh battery. In our tests: 1 hour of local 4K video playback consumed 4% battery, 1 hour of WeChat video call consumed 10%, 1 hour of scrolling Douyin (TikTok) in HD quality consumed 6%, 1 hour of scrolling Weibo consumed 7%, 1 hour of scrolling Taobao consumed 6%, and playing Honor of Kings for 1 hour consumed 10%. The final remaining battery was 57%, indicating excellent battery life performance.

For charging, the Red Magic 11 Pro+ supports 120W wired fast charging and 80W wireless fast charging. Starting from 1% battery, the Red Magic 11 Pro+ charged to 24% in 5 minutes, 44% in 10 minutes, and took 32 minutes to reach 100% and automatically stop charging.

Using the Red Magic 11 Pro+ evokes a magical feeling: amazement coupled with a sense of inevitability. This is precisely the image the Red Magic brand has cultivated in the minds of gamers: powerful, unique, reliable.

In a way, Red Magic's brand tendency is similar to digital enthusiasts of the past, always pursuing the optimal solution for a specific experience and tirelessly tinkering to find their most comfortable setup. The Red Magic 11 Pro+ is the culmination of this very tinkering.

To enjoy gaming to the fullest, you need stronger performance. Stronger performance generates more heat, but overheating ruins the experience. This impossible triangle is difficult to solve. But now, the Red Magic 11 Pro+ provides a perfect answer.